There are many different systems in the prior art for standoff mooring of a boat to a dock or pier. These systems serve to prevent the boat from contacting the dock or pier to prevent damage which could be incurred from rough seas, high winds, tidal changes etc. Fenders are commonly used to protect boats moored to a dock. Fenders are usually made of a rubber-like plastic and filled with air under low pressure. Some are sealed, others can be inflated to higher pressures with a hand pump. Fenders generally have an eye molded in at each end for attaching a short length of light line used to suspend them along the side of a boat.
Fenders can be very effective for preventing contact between moored boats or the boat and the dock, however fenders can become displaced by vertical motion of the boat. This can result in damage to the boat when the dock contacts the boat above or below the fender. Another drawback is that the fenders are bulky, and on a relatively small boat (10–25 feet in length) take up a large percent of the available storage space.
There are several systems for standoff mooring disclosed in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,234 discloses a device to fix a floating boat to a dock that allows the boat to move up and down freely in the water. The device includes two elongated arms that are fixed to a cleat on the boat which extend to the dock forming a triangle. The device can only be used on a wooden dock constructed of lateral planks since the dock attachment fits in the slots between the planks.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,138 discloses a standoff mooring bar for a boat which is adjustable in length. The device must be attached to upright pylons, which may not be present in every docking situation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,846 discloses a mooring device which comprises a mounting bracket which may be attached to a dock in various positions and provides for pivotal attachment of a mooring arm to the mounting bracket. The mooring arm comprises an inner hollow elongated member telescoping within an outer elongated hollow member.
In each of the above prior art patents, at least two of the disclosed devices must be used in a parallel arrangement to properly moor the boat. It would be highly desirable to provide a simplified system wherein standoff mooring could be accomplished with a single device.
The present invention as disclosed herein overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art systems by providing a lightweight device of economic design which accomplishes standoff mooring of a boat while allowing for vertical differentials in the distance between the boat and dock, and which also requires that only a single device be employed, thus providing ease of installation and storage.